Coloured pencil basics

Welcome from the editor

With the January issue of Leisure Painter comes the

Diary

THINGS TO DO THIS MONTH

Exhibitions

Chris Elsden Blackpool Sands, oil, 20x30in. (51x76cm)

Books

Visit www.painters-online.co.uk/store and click on

Art clubs

OVER TO YOU FOR THE LATEST NEWS ON CLUB EXHIBITIONS AND ACTIVITIES

Art club gallery

If you would like to see your art group’s winning paintings

Online gallery

Jane Stroud’s selection of works from our PaintersOnline gallery

Painting – Van Gogh style

How to develop your own paintings by using the techniques, colours and ideas of Vincent van Gogh, by Sarah Wimperis

Wild about watercolour

Why would you choose watercolour for sketching and painting wildlife? Wildlife artist, Julia Cassels extols the virtues of her favourite medium

Painting project

Part 1 Colin Steed introduces this month’s painting project from a photograph as he explains how to capture this misty coastal subject using watercolour techniques

Winter warmer

How to paint the bright sunshine and warm colours of central Italy in watercolour, with Colin Joyce

Beginners’ acrylics

Part 1 How to use this versatile medium to produce paintings of floral motifs full of detail, texture and interest, by Matthew Evans

Figures in watercolour

Part 1 Brian Smith looks at some of the problems associated with rendering figures in watercolour. This month, figures in the background and middle distance

Winter practice

The snow may not have arrived yet, but here’s a practice run from acrylic painter, Steve Strode

Pastels for beginners

Tips and techniques for painting with pastels, by Jenny Kealc

Let’s start with art

Part 1 Charcoal Whether you are just beginning to paint or want to try a new medium, Linda Birch begins a new series discussing the uses of popular media

White Christmas

If you are dreaming of a white Christmas, why not paint it? Robert Newcombe suggests four ways of painting a snow scene

Studies in the landscape

Part 1 Anne Kerr begins a six-part series demonstrating how to draw elements of the landscape with a look at materials and mark making this month

Mindful drawing

Top tips and techniques to rekindle your creativity and fill your sketchbook, by Susan Yeates

Planet suite

Elena Parashko discusses the challenges she overcame to paint a mural in an observatory on a remote island

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